


When On Tatooine

by LexiaWHoo



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, The Mandalorian (TV)
Genre: Din Djarin Removes the Helmet, Eventual Smut, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Mutual Pining, Original Character(s), Porn with Feelings, Resolved Sexual Tension, Strong Female Characters, Touch-Starved Din Djarin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-25
Updated: 2021-01-25
Packaged: 2021-03-14 06:40:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,435
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28666371
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LexiaWHoo/pseuds/LexiaWHoo
Summary: The Mandalorian spends much time on Tatooine. Especially since his mechanic hired a new, human, set of hands to help around her junkyard.
Relationships: Din Djarin/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 4





	When On Tatooine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Her name was Veera. Just Veera. And even after he left the desert planet, he found himself thinking of her.

There was an alarming set of creaks and groans as the Razor Crest landed on Tatooine. The Mandalorian had long grown used to the thunk of his helmet against the pilot seat from many a rough landing, but this was exceptionally worse. An unknown enemy ship had latched onto the Crest and made a mess of the back left wall. The scrap metal Mando had welded kept the ship from imploding in space but it needed real repairs and most likely parts. 

"There's my favorite guy! And Mando!" shouted Peli as she approached the hatch. The child giggled and waddled towards the woman.

"Nice to see you too..." sighed the Mandalorian, "Ships in bad shape."

The mechanic scoffed as she scooped up the little creature, "Uh yeah. I can see that, and hear it. And-"

"I get it. Can it be fixed?" he said defensively.

She sighed, "Well I need to look at it first, but probably. If you need parts though... it's gonna be an overnight job. My errand monkey is out trading and buying scrap. Won't be back until dark."

"I'm sure I need parts. Any chance he'll be back sooner?"

"Woah Woah! She's a she, first of all! And maybe, but if you're oh so impatient you can go hunt her down! I'd be happy to watch this little thing while you're gone." she replied.

They came to an agreement soon after the droids finished assessing the damage. The crest needed parts Peli didn't have, and Mando wanted it done before the suns rose the next day. He was going after her _errand monkey_ and taking the kid with him, much to her dismay. But she needed to work on the crest as much as she could since he barely tolerated the droids. 

Peli said her employee was named Veera. From her description she was "a tall slight thing, probably sunburnt, and a mess of black hair" and Mando assumed she had a speeder loaded with junk from the shop. 

He took his own speeder and set off through Mos Eisley. Peli said the trading post was right inside the city walls but Veera wasn't afraid to go out and barter in further reaches of the desert. Apparently she even traded with Jawas on occasion. This was sounding more and more like a bounty than finding a friend of friend. But he wasn't really surprised with the human company Peli kept, considering himself.

The Mandalorian decided to work his way from outside the walls and back in, thinking it less likely that he'd pass her unknowingly. After racing through the desolate Tattoine landscape for some time he spotted a group of Jawas hauling scrap over a dune. He shouted after them and they scattered, which was understandable in hindsight. He approached the pile of junk and immediately recognized some of it as repurposed parts of the Razor Crest he'd dumped at Peli's on previous visits. The girl had already reached the Jawa's then, and had probably already been inside the walls. He left the scrap where it lay and took back off on the speeder hearing the chirp of the Jawas as they came out from hiding.

The child screeched in delight the whole way back to Mos Eisley. By the time he'd reached the wall the suns had started to descend but there was still a good amount of time before they would fully set. But the Mandalorian was in luck. As soon as he was let inside the gate, he heard an unfamiliar voice call for him.

"Mando!" she shouted, "You the one I've heard so much about?'

He turned to see a woman approaching with a satchel of metal over her shoulder. She was tall and slight just like Peli had said, but she was only red across the nose and cheeks from the sun. Her pitch black hair wasn't as messy as he'd expected either. She was pretty in a rough and tumble sort of way, actually. He nodded at her and she smiled as she stood before him. She looked down, noticing the baby attached to his side. "And this guy! He's just as cute as Peli said!" 

He grinned underneath his helmet, almost proud of his surrogate child for immediately charming anyone they met. And because frankly, the girl was charming too. He coughed to get her attention again, "Peli said you might need help gathering parts if you want to be back before dark. And I need said parts for my ship."

She crossed her arms and scoffed, "I don't need help, you do. You want me back quicker so you can leave quicker." she squat down to look at the child again, "Is your dad always so impatient? Yeah? Typical man, huh?" The child cooed in response, eliciting a giggle from the woman, "Looks like he agrees."

He watched her stand back up and dust off her hands. He said, "You're right. I need to leave before tomorrow morning. So, should I help you with the trading?"

She laughed, "Yeah... no. You're too dry for that. You gotta lay on the charm and that means being talkative, which no offense, you are not."

Veera wasn't wrong about that. The Mandalorian agreed to follow her and help haul things back and she would do all the bargaining. It was almost entertaining to watch her work, becoming a new person every few encounters to gain the favor of buyers and sellers. It was a good thing Peli had her, because she was only blunt and crass when it was necessary. Before he knew it, his speeder was full of parts and the suns were setting over the horizon. The pair took off from the last trading post towards Peli's and reached it in no time.

By the time they'd unloaded all their cargo it was dark. Peli stood in wait with a smirk, "What happened to coming back before dark?"

Veera tossed her a bag of credits, "We were just having so much fun we lost track of time! I think I like him more than you!" she shot back.

Peli rolled her eyes and summoned the droids over to sort through the days harvest. Veera took the opportunity to pester The Mandalorian while the baby was running amuck chasing sand spiders. "So, if that's your kid..."

He interrupted, "No I do not look like that under the helmet. He's not really my kid."

She sat beside him, "You're family, though. I can tell. But if you don't look like him, what do you look like?"

"I don't take off the helmet."

"I know. _This is the way_ and all that. But you have to take it off to shower and stuff, yeah? Because if not that-"

He interrupted, "Yes I take it off to shower."

She mouthed a _Thank God_ and grabbed a fruit. He shook his head and went back to watching the kid, though he could feel her looking at him curiously. After a while she got up and was gone for some time before coming back with a box of fruits and some sort of bread. She sat it down in front of him, "Figure you gotta eat. You can hide somewhere and I'll stand guard." she mock saluted and walked over to the baby picking him up, "And I will keep him occupied. Isn't that right, you little womp rat?" the baby wiggled in her arms and made a happy noise. She gestured at him with a smile and make a shoo motion to Mando. 

He didn't show it much but he was grateful. He nodded as a way of saying thanks and grabbed the box of food on his way into the shop. There was a boiler room of sorts that was no longer in use that he'd made his designated break room on a previous pit stop. He reached for the edge of his helmet and carefully slipped it off once he was safely inside the space. He placed it on a set of pipes to his left and began to eat, the events of the day finally catching up with him. He always had these moments alone at the end of a day or sometimes a few days, depending on how busy they had been. 

He caught sight of his reflection in a panel across from him as he bit into an apple. He wondered sometimes how people would react if they saw his face. Nobody had since he was a child, and even he himself didn't pay much attention to his appearance. If he were to remove the armor and wander into town, even his friends would be none the wiser. It was odd to think of himself as having friends, as he'd only been loyal to the creed his whole life and preferred working alone. But he'd changed in the past few months, the child awakening something almost soft within him. He found it strange that people trust him and cared for him when they had never seen his face or heard his story. But he supposed this is how things were, and how they should always be.

Just as he swallowed the last bit of bread and lift his helmet, he heard laughter from outside the room. He rushed to secure his helmet and opened the door to see Veera chasing the baby down the corridor. She wasn't going at full speed of course, the child's little legs not giving him any advantage. The Mandalorian felt a tinge of warmth at the sentiment, though. He approached them just as she bent over to grab the creature around the middle and pull him up into a tight embrace.

"Having fun, kid?" Mando spoke

Veera spun around, "Oh yeah... How do you get anything done with this guy around?" she pat him on the head, "He's just too cute!"

The child cooed at her before wiggling to face his father and reaching for him.

The Mandalorian chuckled and took him from the woman, "You say that until he vomits up a frog leg on your lap."

She snorted and shook her head, "Sorry you had to hear that but oh my god," she pointed at him, "that's an image."

They continued down the hallway, the Mandalorian not really knowing where he was being led. He didn't even know the shop went this deep. Soon they entered what seemed to be a lounge area of sorts, though it wasn't the most comfortable he'd ever seen. Everything seemed to be salvaged and refurbished, just like the rest of the shop, but what should he expect of Peli?

"Take a seat, Mando, or... what was your name?" 

"I'm a Mandalorian. My name was forgotten when I took the creed." he said, almost hostile.

She snapped her fingers, "Damn. Thought I'd get you there. You know... my names forgotten, too. Big secret."

He scoffed, "Oh is that right, Veera?"

"My _last_ name is the secret," she shot back trying to push away the feeling of hearing her name on his tongue, "I don't even know it. I was born in a pretty uhhh traditional area. Mom had me before she was married, so I couldn't take my dad's last name. Bastard children, ya know?"

The Mandalorian's helmet tilted, "What about your mother?"

She waved him off, "Women don't get to pass on their names either. So I'm just Veera." she sat beside him and nudged his shoulder, "And you're just a Mandalorian."

They sat in silence for a minute. He wondered what compelled her to share her troubled past with him and she was embarrassed about shooting off at the mouth. She had a knack for oversharing and being a bit too trusting, and even though she liked the Mandalorian so far, she feared that she would annoy him to death. Or more likely, her death. After some time twiddling their thumbs and watching the child climb around the room she couldn't stand the silence any more. She was tired too, having been out all day in the searing heat of Tatooine. She got up and headed to her room just off the side of the lounge area to change.

She didn't notice the Mandalorian watching her leave.

When she came back out she was in a loose cotton shirt and baggy pants, hair pulled back and away from her face. She carried a pile of linens as well, sitting them on the makeshift couch beside the armored man, "I'm gonna get some sleep. You should too, though these blankets aren't the most comfortable." 

He nodded at her again and she continued, "I'll be there if you need me, and I promise I won't take off your helmet in the middle of the night." She said this with a grin before turning back towards her door. She had one foot in and the door half shut behind her when The Mandalorian spoke.

"I was a foundling." he said flatly.

She quirked her brow before smiling and nodding. It was a random flat statement but she knew what it meant. 

You and I are not so different.

* * *

They were up early the next morning, and as promised, Veera had not peaked under the Mandalorian's helmet in the night. The suns had barely risen in the sky when he dropped a handful of credits into Peli's hand.

She grinned, "Suppose this'll do for now..." and slapped his armored shoulder, "But I better not see you for a while!"

He nodded, amused by the mechanic. His attention shifted behind her to Veera who was approaching with the baby. She gave the child a small kiss on the forehead before handing him over. 

"Made sure he didn't eat any frogs while you got the ship ready."

He chuckled, "Thanks. It was good to meet you."

"You too, Mando. Stay safe," she leaned down to the child, "especially you, Mister Trouble."

The women waved the Mandalorian and the child goodbye as the hatch closed on the Razor Crest. The Mandalorian set the coordinates for Nevarro and prepared the ship for launch. He looked out the window to see Veera sitting just outside the launch zone still watching them leave even though she could not see inside. Her hair was wild blowing in the wind as he finally took off, catching one final salute before she became too small to see. Before long they were out of Tatooine's atmosphere but there was a feeling he couldn't shake.

Her name was Veera. Just Veera. And even after he left the desert planet, he found himself thinking of her.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm not feeling great about this first chapter but now that they're established I feel ~optimistic~ about the future. This story will only have maybe 5 chapters because I just want to comfort Din with my self-insert OC's body lmao


End file.
